Zimbabwe is under a red alert warning after a Chinese company, Hunan Nanling Industry Explosive Material Co Ltd, announced plans to set up a bomb materials production project in the country.
A mysterious unnamed local company is hosting the dodgy Chinese deal that comes as safety analysts warned that human life is at risk. The US based Richard G Little, warned saying “once again, the world has a front-row seat to observe what happens when those responsible for public safety ignore risks in favor of short-term economic gain. In the case of the Tianjin explosion in China, cozy relationships between businesses and public officials led to reduced scrutiny and no doubt contributed significantly to the scale and outcome of the disaster.
“The lesson of past disasters such as the New Orleans levees, Deepwater Horizon and Fukushima Daiichi is that the root cause of these failures usually lies in perverse incentive structures and institutional conflicts that actually de-emphasize safety.
“China needs to show its people and the world that it cares about industrial safety by empowering competent, committed and incorruptible officials to act in the public interest. Economic growth and public safety need not be mutually exclusive.”
Meanwhile the state media reported that first phase of the project will see the company together with its unnamed local partner construct a 12 000 tonne emulsion explosives fixed production line. The expected construction period of the first phase is 12 months.
The total investment is 1,06 billion yuan ($245 million).
Hunan Nanling Industrial Explosive Materials said the Hong Kong JV New World (Hong Kong) International Development Limited) had been set up specifically in line with the Chinese Government’s external investment policy.
Hunan Nanling Industrial Explosive Materials is principally engaged in research, development, manufacture and sale of civil explosive materials, military products and civil explosive professional equipment, as well as blasting and logistics business.
The firm’s products and services can be divided into industrial explosives,
industrial detonating cords, industrial detonators, engineering blasting operations, and transportation and distribution services.
The Zimbabwe project’s line of business will include: production of emulsion explosives and ANFO; non-electric blasting assembly detonator; distribution and sale of civilian blasting equipment; civilian blasting equipment to provide technical advice, blasting services and mining services.
According to Hunan Nanling Industrial Explosive Materials the setting up of the joint venture in Hong Kong, and the investment into the Zimbabwe project have been approved by the Hunan Provincial Department of Commerce.
Chinese investment into Zimbabwe has maintained an upward trajectory, especially after President Robert Mugabe’s State visit to China in December last year where he and Chinese President Xi Jinping signed 10 investment deals. – BH24/Reuters.